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Contestants from the U.S., Ireland and Thailand take top honors.

The [Infographic Competition] fosters creative development and distribution of statistics relevant to the industry, and this directly aligns with our vision of pushing the industry forward with innovative and data-driven ideas.

New York, NY (PRWEB)October 31, 2013

The Global Spa & Wellness Summit (GSWS) today announced the winners of its inaugural Spa and Wellness Infographic Competition, which offered a new opportunity for people around the world to become engaged with the GSWS. The top honor was awarded to Lori Hutchinson, founder and co-owner of Hutchinson Consulting, a California-based hospitality-recruiting firm, for her infographic titled “You Would Love a Spa Career.”

Hutchinson’s entry was inspired by a survey of 548 spa professionals worldwide who said their careers were rewarding and fulfilling. Her winning infographic depicted five compelling reasons why a spa career should be considered and was designed in collaboration with Jason Parmer, creative director of Dapper, an advertising and design agency based in Lexington, Kentucky.

The second prize went to Johnathan Preyer, also of the U.S., for his consumer-facing design, “The Sitting Disease,” which depicted why “sitting is the new smoking” and explained who it affects and why people should take it seriously. Third-place honors were shared by Aimee Stewart of Ireland for her design titled “What Is Your Ayurvedic Dosha?” and Itchaya Goaysomboon of Thailand for “The Rise of Health and Wellness.”

The four contestants shared $5,000 in prizes: $2,500 was awarded to Hutchinson and $1,500 to the second-place winner. Third-place winners shared a $1,000 cash award.

“The infographic we designed was really a collaboration, as so many things are in the world of spa,” said Lori Hutchinson, who submitted the first-place entry. “After last year's GSWS in Aspen, the Education Committee empaneled a group of us to look into spa careers. We created a survey on career paths and were delighted with a fantastic response—and learned very important data about career satisfaction, mentoring, internships and education. So it seemed that an infographic would be the perfect way to summarize all of that for this year's GSWS.”

Over 130 people registered for the international competition, which challenged contestants to use the infographic design medium to present an informed, inspired vision of any aspect of spa or wellness they chose. Infographics blend visuals with data and content to allow information to be presented in an engaging, easy-to-grasp way.

GSWS Board Member Dr. Marc Cohen, a professor at RMIT University, Australia, and the director of the competition, noted, “The competition purposely left the interpretation of spa and wellness open-ended to encourage creative entries. We were pleased that many of the infographics were designed to inspire people to live healthier lives and experience the benefits of spa and wellness, as well as appealing to the broader industry.”

The contest, sponsored by SpaBooker, which offers spas and wellness businesses a unified web-based platform accessible from any device, was open to both individuals and teams over the age of 18. A panel of three judges selected the final winners.

“When we learned about the Summit’s first Infographic Competition, it was an automatic yes for us,” said Josh McCarter, CEO of SpaBooker. “The event fosters creative development and distribution of statistics relevant to the industry, and this directly aligns with our vision of pushing the industry forward with innovative and data-driven ideas. We congratulate all of the winners for their inspiring and creative infographics.”

About the Summit: The Global Spa & Wellness Summit (GSWS) is an international organization representing senior executives and leaders from over 40 countries, joined by a common interest to drive economic development and understanding of the spa and wellness industries. Delegates from diverse sectors, including hospitality, tourism, health and wellness, beauty, finance, medical, real estate, manufacturing and technology, attend the organization’s annual Summit, which is held in a different host country each year. After just seven years, the GSWS is now considered the leading global research and educational resource for the $1.9 trillion spa and wellness industry. It is known for introducing major industry initiatives such as SpaEvidence.com, the world’s first online portal to the medical evidence behind common spa and wellness therapies. For more information, visit http://www.gsws.org.